'Art Is Operating In A Global Marketplace'

Since when have you been planning to get into auction of international artists?

We at Saffronart were conscious of the growing interest of Indian collectors in Western art in the last four to five years, and have been working on this pioneering auction for the past several months.

Why?

As part of Saffronart’s long-term commitment to provide art connoisseurs in India and across the globe with access to the finest works of art, Saffronart decided to launch this category. The auction offers a unique opportunity for collectors to acquire significant works by legends of the art world including Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Fernand Léger, and others.

Where all did you source these works from?

The works were sourced from private collections as well as from galleries and dealers specializing in these artists. Our experts for this sale checked the provenance and authenticity of each work before including it in the catalogue.

How long did it take to put it together?

We had planned this auction for a while and it took us over six months to put together this collection.

Who have your buyers been till now?

Saffronart’s clients include leading art collectors and business houses in India and around t he world. The profile of buyers includes high net worth wealthy individuals such as successful entrepreneurs, heads of publicly listed companies, CEO level professionals, celebrities and wealthy professionals. We also have a large group of young professionals who make their first foray into art buying with Saffronart.

Who do you see as the potential buyers for the present collection?

Many collectors in India have already begun to inform themselves about and acquire artwork by non-Indian artists. They have read about and experienced international genres including modern, impressionist and contemporary Western art in museums and elsewhere outside the country, and increasingly through exhibitions in India as well. As a result, they are familiar with almost all the artists represented in this auction, and we believe they will appreciate the opportunity it offers them to own a work by Picasso, Matisse, Chagall or Miro. Given that the estimates in this auction are extremely attractive, with some starting as low as $1500, we also hope to attract young, first-time collectors looking to acquire a significant work of art.

But if its an online auction it'd be from world over?

Saffronart’s online auctions facilitate participation by bidders from all across the world. Having said that, as the auction works have been displayed in our Delhi and Mumbai galleries – and many of these artists have been brought to India for the first time – we expect a strong response from buyers in India.

Rs 4 crore seems very competitive for a Van Gogh. And just a couple of lakhs for Andy Warhol. How are the works so competitively priced? Is it because market has been down? Or is it that they are relatively not heard of works?

Like most markets these days, art is operating in a global marketplace. The works are priced competitively inline with international auction estimates and the comparables for most of these works are available for people to view on our website.

The Vincent van Gogh, L’allée aux deux promeneurs (Lane with Two Figures) is an early work from 1885 a year which was to prove pivotal in Van Gogh’s artistic career. It was a few months before this was painted that Van Gogh created his first great masterpiece The Potato Eaters. 4 crores is an attractive estimate for the work which we hope will attract bidders.

The Warhols are signed lithographs from a limited edition and thus are priced accordingly.

People have been talking about how art market has been crashing world over alongside the financial downturn? Is that true?

While art markets were affected by the financial downturn, most art markets have shown great resilience subsequently.

How about the Indian art market? Is it downbeat too?

The mood is upbeat on the heels of successful auctions of Indian art, the crowds at the India Art Fair and seminal exhibits such as those of Anish Kapoor. The market has recovered reasonably well for modern artists relative to the downturn of 2008 but if one takes the long-view of the future economic growth of the country, there are some excellent opportunities for collectors to enter the market.

If you can tell a bit more about online auctioning: how similar or different is it from an on-ground one?

The main-difference is convenience (in an online auction you can bid from anywhere, over a two-day period, as opposed to a few hours in an auction room) and transparency of information (view comparables, additional charges, etc at any point).

Some of the features of the Saffront art auction:

• To bid in any Saffronart auction, clients must pre-register for the sale. Once the pre-registration process is completed and approved, clients are given bidding access for that auction.
• All bidding is conducted either online on Saffronart’s website or via the Saffronart mobile bidding application or the newly launched iPad application.
• The format of the auction allows bidders to login, monitor the sale, and bid over a two day period, unlike physical auctions where bidders are constrained by an auction period of a few hours
• Online bidding offers privacy to the bidder
• Bidding occurs simultaneously on multiple lots, allowing interested clients the flexibility and convenience of bidding on their favourite works at the same time. Saffronart became the first fine art auction house globally to launch a mobile bidding application available for devices such as Blackberry, and the Apple iPhone and iPad offering collectors speed, convenience and secure access no matter where they are.
• Bidders can view additional charges at any point of time in the sale based on the current bid at that point, including buyer’s premium, shipping charges etc. They can also view prices of comparable works in prior auctions. These features are not available in a physical auction.